Seattle Historical Sites

Summary for 504 E Denny WAY E / Parcel ID 6848200650 / Inv #

Historic Name: St. Florence Apartments Common Name: St. Florence Apartments Style: Queen Anne Neighborhood: Capitol Hill Built By: Year Built: 1914   Significance In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. In the opinion of the survey, this property is located in a potential historic districe (National and/or local). The St. Florence Apartments were designed by local architect Frank Fowler for Daniel O. Boyd. Boyd was listed in the city directory as a carpenter, and may have been the contractor as well. He owned this property from 1911 until at least 1937. Fowler was an architect and engineer who also designed two major University District buildings, the Wilsonian Apartment Hotel and the Lambert Building. He died in 1932. This distinctive building is a good example of the numerous apartments buildings built early in the 20th century on the western part of Capitol Hill, one of the city's earliest dense apartment neighborhoods. The neighborhood's proximity to downtown and easy streetcar access made it appealing to developers and tenants of all types. The first two decades brought significant population growth in Seattle, but relatively little construction, partially due to economic factors relating to World War I. Thus, this building is somewhat unusual, being constructed in 1914, between the two construction booms of 1908-09 and the 1920s. Its design is typical of the early date, with bay windows is It is largely intact, except for new windows.   Appearance This St. Florence is basically rectangular, but with an 18-foot deep light well along the rear giving it a shallow L-shape. It has three stories plus a lower daylight basement level on the south end, due to the sloping site. It is of solid brick construction faced with dark red brick, with a concrete lower level, painted red. Darker bricks at regular intervals provide a decorative accent. The most notable features are the three-sided hanging bays on the second and third stories. There are two bays at the corners and flanking the entry; each bay is clad with wood paneling and topped with a red clay tile roof. The recessed entry is elegant, clad with cream-colored terra cotta with marble stairs and wainscoting. Other terra cotta ornament includes a wide water table, a belt course above the top story and window sills and voissoirs. Windows are one-over-one double-hung sash. On the west façade is a secondary entry with tile flooring.

Detail for 504 E Denny WAY E / Parcel ID 6848200650 / Inv #

Status: Yes - Inventory Classication: Building District Status: Cladding(s): Brick Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured Roof Type(s): Flat with Eaves Roof Material(s): Unknown Building Type: Domestic - Multiple Family Plan: L-Shape Structural System: Brick No. of Stories: three Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture Integrity Changes to Original Cladding: Intact Changes to Plan: Intact Changes to Windows: Intact Major Bibliographic References Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996. Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Historical Guide to the Architects. Jeffrey Karl Ochsner, ed. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994. King County Tax Assessor Records, ca. 1932-1972. City of Seattle, Department of Planning and Development, Microfilm Records.

Photo collection for 504 E Denny WAY E / Parcel ID 6848200650 / Inv #

Photo taken Sep 12, 2006